JP4075769B2 - connector - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a connector having a lock arm.

  Conventionally, there is a connector described in Patent Document 1 as a connector having a lock arm. This is a lock arm that is cantilevered from the front end of the housing on the top surface of the housing, and is formed integrally with the lock projection at the center of the top surface of the lock arm in the longitudinal direction. A release operation portion is formed at the rear end portion of the lock arm, and a flexible support portion extending from the rear end portion of the lock arm is extended to the upper surface of the housing.

Thus, according to the connector in which the free end (rear end) of the lock arm is supported by the flexible support portion, both the connectors are fitted and locked by the lock arm, and the release operation of the rear end of the lock arm is performed. Even if a foreign object interferes with the release operation part with the part exposed to the outside, the rear end part of the lock arm on which the release operation part is formed is supported so that it is not easily bent by the flexible support part. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the lock arm from being carelessly bent and the lock protrusion from being detached from the lock portion. Further, when unlocking, if the operation force of a predetermined level or more is applied to the release operation portion, the lock projection can be released from the lock portion by bending the lock arm while deforming the flexible support portion. This will not interfere with the unlocking operation.
Japanese Utility Model Application No. 61-8777

  In the above conventional connector, since the flexible support portion extends further rearward from the rear end of the lock arm, the lock arm and the flexible support portion are arranged on the upper surface of the housing. There was a problem that a large space (long in the front-rear direction) was required, and the size of the entire connector was increased.

  The present invention has been completed based on the above circumstances, and aims to reduce the size.

As a means for achieving the above object, the invention of claim 1 is characterized in that a lock arm is formed on the upper surface of the housing so as to extend rearward and enable elastic bending in the vertical direction. the rear end portion of the lock arm releasing operation portion is formed, between the upper surface of the lock arm and the housing, a connector supporting portion having flexibility extending in the longitudinal direction is formed, said locking arm The rear end portion is formed with a notch portion that is open at the rear end edge, and the left and right sides of the notch portion at the rear end portion of the lock arm form a pair of receiving portions, and the support portion The front end of the cutout portion is connected to the front end edge of the cutout portion, and the release operation portion is a pair of side wall portions that rise obliquely rearward and upward from the upper surface of the receiving portion. Standing on both side walls By integrally forming the finger rest portion having a substantially horizontal plate-like shape for connecting the Agarihana each other, it has a feature where a form forming a gate shape as a whole.

<Invention of Claim 1>
Since the front end of the support portion is continuous with the lock arm at a position in front of the rear end, the arrangement space of the lock arm and the support portion on the upper surface of the housing is larger than that of the form connected to the rear end of the lock arm. The connector can be small, and the connector can be miniaturized.

Further, since the support part is housed inside the notch part , the support part can be protected from the interference of foreign matter from the outside.

<Embodiment 1>
A first embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS.

  The female connector F (connector which is a constituent element of the present invention) of the present embodiment can be fitted with the male connector M. First, the male connector M will be described. The male connector M forms a rectangular tube-shaped hood portion 11 opening forward at the front end portion of the male housing 10, and the tab 12 of the male terminal fitting is formed in the hood portion 11. Is a protruding one. On the front end edge of the upper surface wall of the hood portion 11, a lock portion 13 having a shape in which the central portion in the width direction protrudes downward is formed.

  The female connector F is a housing in which a female terminal fitting 21 is housed in a female housing 20 (housing which is a constituent element of the present invention) in the form of a block made of synthetic resin. 22 is integrally formed. The lock arm 22 includes an arm main body 23 having a flat plate shape in the front-rear direction, a leg portion 24 for supporting the front end portion (left end portion in FIG. 1) of the lock arm 22 on the female side housing 20, and a lock arm. An unlocking operation part 25 for unlocking 22 and a support part 26 for supporting the rear end of the lock arm 22 on the female housing 20 are integrally formed.

  The arm body 23 is disposed substantially parallel to the upper surface of the female housing 20 above the upper surface of the female housing 20. A lock protrusion 27 is formed on the upper surface of the arm body 23 so as to protrude upward from a substantially central position in the front-rear direction. The leg portion 24 is configured to protrude downward from left and right side edge portions on the lower surface of the front end portion of the lock arm 22, and the lower end of the leg portion 24 is continuous so as to be placed on the upper surface front end portion of the female housing 20. . The front end portion of the lock arm 22 is supported by the female housing 20 by the leg portion 24, and the lock arm 22 can be elastically bent in the vertical direction with the leg portion 24 as a substantially fulcrum. The lock arm 22 can be elastically deformed so that the arm main body 23 is curved. The front end surface of the arm main body 23 and the front end surface of the leg portion 24 are flush with the front end surface of the female housing 20, and the rear end of the arm main body 23 is slightly forward of the rear end of the female housing 20. positioned.

  At the rear end portion of the arm main body 23, a notch portion 28 is formed which is open to the rear end edge and has a shape in which a central portion in the width direction of the arm main body 23 is cut out in a substantially square shape. Of the rear end portion of the arm body 23, the left and right portions of the cutout portion 28 form a pair of receiving portions 29, and a release operation portion 25 is formed on the upper surface of the receiving portion 29. The release operation part 25 is a finger rest part having a substantially horizontal plate shape in which a pair of side wall parts 30 rising obliquely upward from the upper surface of the receiving part 29 and upper ends (rising ends) of the side wall parts 30 are connected to each other. 31 is formed integrally and has a gate shape as a whole. The inner surface of the side wall portion 30 is continuous with the inner side edge of the receiving portion 29 (that is, the side edge of the notch portion 28). On the upper surface of the finger pad portion 31, a finger hook portion 32 that protrudes in a rib shape along the rear edge is formed. Further, the front end of the side wall portion 30 of the release operation portion 25 is positioned in front of the front end edge of the notch portion 28, and the rear end of the side wall portion 30 is continuous with the rear end edge of the receiving portion 29. The front end edge of the finger rest 31 is located slightly behind the front end edge of the notch 28 and forward of the rear end edge of the receiving portion 29, and the rear end edge of the finger rest 31 is the rear end edge of the receiving portion 29. It is located behind the rear end edge and ahead of the rear end edge of the female housing 20.

  The support portion 26 has a plate shape elongated in the front-rear direction, and is located at the center in the width direction of the female-side housing. The support portion 26 includes a rising portion 33 that rises at a right angle from the rear end of the upper surface of the female housing, and an inclined portion 34 that extends from the upper end of the rising portion 33 so as to incline with an upward slope. The rear end surface of the support portion 26 (the rear end surface of the rising portion 33) is flush with the rear end surface of the female housing 20, and the rear end of the support portion 26 is the rear end of the receiving portion 29 of the arm body 23 and the release. It is located behind the rear end of the operation unit 25. The front end of the inclined portion 34 is continuous with the front end edge of the cutout portion 28 of the lock arm 22. The width dimension of the support part 26 is narrower than the opening width of the notch part 28, and the front end part of the inclined part 34 is located inside the notch part 28. As the arm main body 23 is elastically bent, the support portion 26 can be elastically bent in the vertical direction with the rising portion 33 as a fulcrum.

  Further, a protective portion 35 for protecting the release operation portion 25 and the support portion 26 of the lock arm 22 is integrally formed at the rear end portion of the upper surface of the female housing 20. The protection part 35 includes a pair of left and right protection walls 36 that rise from the positions on both the left and right sides of the release operation part 25, and a substantially horizontal protection plate 37 that connects the upper ends of the protection walls 36. The protection part 35 has a gate shape as a whole, and is exposed to the outside of the hood part 11 in a state where both the connectors F and M are properly fitted. Inside the protective part 35, the receiving part 29 of the arm main body 23, the front end part of the finger rest part 31 of the release operation part 25, the whole side wall part 30, and the whole supporting part 26 are located. The protection unit 35 protects against foreign matter interference.

  Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described.

  When fitting both the connectors F and M, as shown in FIG. 2, the female housing 20 is fitted into the hood portion 11 and the lock protrusion 27 is brought into contact with the lock portion 13. From this state, when a large pressing force that exceeds the locking force between the lock protrusion 27 and the lock portion 13 is applied to the female housing 20, the lock between the lock protrusion 27 and the lock portion 13 is released, and the female housing 20 Due to the applied pushing force, both the connectors F and M are brought into the normal fitting state at once (see FIG. 3). In the process of reaching the normal fitting state, as shown in FIG. 2, the arm body 23 is elastically displaced so as to dent the central portion where the lock protrusion 27 is formed, and the support portion 26 moves the inclined portion 34. The lock protrusion 27 sinks under the lock portion 13 while being elastically displaced so as to be displaced in a posture substantially parallel to the upper surface of the female housing. Then, when the normal fitting state is reached, the lock arm 22 is elastically restored to the free state, and the lock protrusion 27 is engaged with the lock portion 13, whereby the connectors F and M are locked in the fitted state.

  In this regular fitting state, as shown in FIG. 3, since the release operation part 25 is exposed to the outside of the hood part 11, a foreign object interferes with the release operation part 25, so that the lock arm 22 moves in the unlocking direction. There is concern about being elastically deflected (being tilted and displaced downward while approaching the upper surface of the female housing 20). However, in the present embodiment, a flexible support portion 26 extending in the front-rear direction is provided between the rear end portion (free end) of the lock arm 22 where the release operation portion 25 is formed and the upper surface of the female housing 20. Since the bending rigidity of the lock arm 22 is increased by the bending rigidity of the support portion 26 and the rear end portion of the locking arm 22 is reinforced so as not to be easily displaced in the unlocking direction. It is prevented that the lock arm 22 is inadvertently bent due to the foreign matter interfering and the lock projection 27 is disengaged from the lock portion 13 and the both connectors F and M are unlocked.

  And when releasing both the connectors F and M locked in the normal fitting state, if an operation force (downward pressing force) of a predetermined level or more is applied to the release operation portion 25, as shown in FIG. Further, while the support portion 26 is displaced so that the inclined portion 34 is in a substantially horizontal posture with the rising portion 33 as a substantially fulcrum, the arm body 23 is inclined downwardly with the leg portion 24 as a substantially fulcrum in the lock arm 22. And the lock protrusion 27 is positioned below the lock portion 13 to be unlocked. Then, both connectors F and M may be pulled apart while maintaining this unlocked state.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, the front end of the support portion 26 is continuous with the lock arm 22 at a position in front of the rear end thereof, so that the support portion is connected to the rear end of the lock arm. In addition, the space for disposing the lock arm 22 and the support portion 26 on the upper surface of the female housing 20 is small, and the female connector M can be downsized.

  Further, the lock arm 22 is formed with a notch 28 that is partially cut in the width direction, and the front end of the support 26 is connected to the front edge of the notch 28, so the front end of the support 26 is notch. Thus, the support portion 26 can be protected from foreign matter interference.

<Other embodiments>
The present invention is not limited to the embodiment described with reference to the above description and drawings. For example, the following embodiments are also included in the technical scope of the present invention, and further, within the scope not departing from the gist of the invention other than the following. Various modifications can be made.

  (1) In the above embodiment, the notch portion and the support portion are arranged at the center in the width direction of the lock arm. However, according to the present invention, the notch portion and the support portion are arranged so as to be deviated from the center in the width direction of the lock arm. It is good.

  (2) In the above embodiment, the notch portion is formed in the lock arm. However, according to the present invention, the front end of the support portion may be continuous with the lower surface of the lock arm without forming the notch portion. In this case, the notch may be open to the left or right side edge of the lock arm.

  (3) In the above embodiment, the cutout portion is opened to the rear end edge of the lock arm. However, according to the present invention, the cutout portion is not opened to the rear end edge of the lock arm, and is opened in a window hole shape. It is good also as a made form.

  (4) In the above embodiment, the front end of the support portion is disposed slightly behind the front end of the release operation portion in the front-rear direction, but according to the present invention, the front end of the support portion is substantially the same position as the front end of the release operation portion or You may arrange | position ahead of the front end of a cancellation | release operation part.

  (5) In the above embodiment, the rear end of the support portion is arranged at substantially the same position as the rear end of the release operation portion in the front-rear direction. However, according to the present invention, the rear end of the support portion is more than the rear end of the release operation portion. May be positioned forward or backward.

  (6) In the above embodiment, the support portion is inclined downwardly in the free state where the lock arm and the support portion do not bend. However, according to the present invention, the support portion is horizontal or rearward in the free state. You may make it go up.

Sectional view showing disengagement of male and female connectors Sectional view showing the state of mating between the male connector and female connector Sectional view showing the state where the male connector and female connector are mated Sectional view showing the unlocked state by the lock arm Top view of female connector XX sectional view of FIG. Front view of female connector Rear view of female connector

Explanation of symbols

F ... Female connector (connector)
20: Female housing (housing)
22 ... Lock arm 25 ... Release operation part 26 ... Support part 28 ... Notch

Claims (1)

On the upper surface of the housing is formed a lock arm that extends backward and is capable of elastic bending in the vertical direction.
A release operation part is formed at the rear end of the lock arm,
In the connector in which a flexible support portion extending in the front-rear direction is formed between the lock arm and the upper surface of the housing,
The rear end of the lock arm is formed with a notch in a form open to the rear edge,
The left and right sides of the notch at the rear end of the lock arm are a pair of receiving parts,
In a state where the front end of the support part is located inside the notch part, it is continuous with the front end edge of the notch part,
The release operation portion integrally forms a pair of side wall portions that rise obliquely upward from the upper surface of the receiving portion, and a finger rest portion that forms a substantially horizontal plate shape that connects the rising ends of both side wall portions. Thus , the connector is characterized in that it forms a gate shape as a whole .

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